Using beans in an organic kitchen

Organic canned beans are fast and easy to use. For really good beans prepare them from scratch. Its really easy to do, you just need a bit of planning.

First, rinse and sort dried beans, discarding any blemished ones or any grit. Then soak:

* LONG SOAK: Cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and lets stand in refrigerator for 12 hours or overnight. Drain.
* QUICK SOAK: In saucepan, cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and bring to boil. Boil for two minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for one hour. Drain.

In a large saucepan, cover drained, soaked beans with three times their volume of fresh water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, and topping up with water if necessary, for about 45 minutes to 1 1/4 hours, depending on age and type of bean. Drain.

First, rinse and sort dried beans, discarding any blemished ones or any grit. Then soak:

* LONG SOAK: Cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and lets stand in refrigerator for 12 hours or overnight. Drain.
* QUICK SOAK: In saucepan, cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and bring to boil. Boil for two minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for one hour. Drain.

In a large saucepan, cover drained, soaked beans with three times their volume of fresh water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, and topping up with water if necessary, for about 45 minutes to 1 1/4 hours, depending on age and type of bean. Drain.

Some people say that discarding soaking liquid helps to reduce flatulence.

For greatest economy, cook up a whole bunch and freeze in quantities similar to the can sizes you usually use.

Here are some equivalents and cooking instructions:

* 1 lb dry beans = 2 1/2 cups dry beans = about 7 1/2 cups cooked beans
* 1 cup dry beans = about 3 cups cooked beans
* 14 oz/398 ml can beans = about 1 1/2 cups drained beans
* 19 oz/540 ml can beans = about 2 cups drained beans